If the Lakers make the playoffs, which looks more and more likely, Jerry West has an idea of how they'll do. "I definitely wouldn't want to play them, I know that," West said. "I think they'd have a chance against anyone. " A Hall of Fame player with the Lakers and now an executive with the Golden State Warriors, West mentioned two teams the Lakers wouldn't want to face. The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs were not among them. "I think if the Lakers would have their preference, they probably wouldn't want to play Denver.

Jerry West is rooting for the Miami Heat to keep winning, even if it means the former Lakers great loses one of his top legacies. West said during a teleconference with reporters Thursday that he wouldn't mind if the Heat broke the Lakers' NBA record of 33 consecutive victories set during the 1971-72 season, when West was their starting point guard. The Heat has won 24 consecutive games after rallying from a 27-point deficit Wednesday to beat Cleveland. “Honestly, I think they've got an incredible chance to do it,” West said.

If the Lakers make the playoffs, which looks more and more likely, Jerry West has an idea of how they'd do. "I definitely wouldn't want to play them, I know that," West said on a conference call with reporters Thursday. "I think they'd have a chance against anyone. " West, a Hall of Fame player for the Lakers and now an executive with Golden State, said there were certain teams the Lakers (36-33) wouldn't want to play. Oklahoma City and San Antonio weren't mentioned. "I think if the Lakers would have their preference, they probably wouldn't want to play Denver.

How much of the Lakers' troubles this season should be attributed to injuries? The Lakers have had just one game all season with their full roster, an opening-night loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Starting point guard Steve Nash was injured in the team's second game. Backup point guard Steve Blake would go down next with an abdominal tear in early November. Eventually reserve big man Jordan Hill was lost for the season because of a hip injury. Center Dwight Howard has been in and out of the lineup with shoulder issues.

The Lakers muscled through two must-win games in a row against a pair of sub-.500 teams (New Orleans and Toronto) but at this stretch of the season, style points are meaningless. What's important is the Lakers (32-31) gained a full game Friday on both the Utah Jazz (32-30) and Golden State Warriors (35-28). The Houston Rockets (34-29) won in Oakland to stay two games ahead of the Lakers. The eighth-place Jazz are vulnerable, but only if the Lakers keep winning. Utah owns the tie-breaker, meaning their half-game lead over the Lakers is functionally 1 1/2. Utah still has to play games in New York, Oklahoma City, Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Portland, Golden State, Minnesota and Memphis.

Kobe Bryant reaffirmed in an appearance on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Thursday night that he'll finish his career with the Lakers. "I'm not going anywhere," said Bryant. "I've been very fortunate to be with one organization and I just feel like you should just try to do the best that you can to try to win with the organization that you're with and if it happens great. If it doesn't, it doesn't. " Bryant mentioned that his 17-year career will be coming to a close in the somewhat near future.

The Lakers (31-31) return home after a two-game road trip to face the Toronto Raptors (24-38) on Friday night at Staples Center. With a victory, the Lakers can climb above .500 for the first time since they were 6-5 early in the season. Two of the three teams they're chasing play each other Friday (Houston and Golden State), which means a Lakers' win would make up one full game in the standings against one of the two. The Raptors initially flourished after the Rudy Gay trade but have since stumbled. They're 7-1/2 games behind the eighth-place Milwaukee Bucks. Toronto still has playoff hopes but they're thin.

Midway through their battle in New Orleans against the Hornets, the Lakers seemed destined to fall two games below .500. A 33-9 fourth-quarter run lifted the Lakers to 31-31 on the season, defeating New Orleans, 108-102. Additionally, the Utah Jazz fell apart in the final moments in Cleveland, losing to the Cavaliers, 104-101. The Cavaliers got another brilliant finish from point guard Kyrie Irving to send Utah to 32-29. In Dallas, the Mavericks closed out the Houston Rockets, 112-108, knocking Houston down to 33-29.

Kobe Bryant will be a guest on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" on Thursday night. The national talk show airs on ABC at 11:35 p.m. The All-Star guard will join Dominic Monaghan and musical guest Rival Sons. The Lakers are fresh off an important road win in New Orleans, coming back from a 25-point deficit to take a 108-102 victory over the Hornets. Bryant is in his 17th season, averaging 27.6 points a game on career-high 47.5% shooting from the field. Though the Lakers are in ninth place at 31-31, they're only 1 1/2 games behind the eighth-place Utah Jazz (technically 2 1/2 given that Utah has the head-to-head tiebreaker)

The Lakers (31-31) are fighting to climb into the top eight in the Western Conference. The goal is to catch the Utah Jazz (32-29), Houston Rockets (33-29) or Golden State Warriors (35-27). While there's no certainty the Lakers achieve that goal, technically it's possible they catch all three to climb as high as the sixth seed. That may be a stretch but climbing any higher than six isn't going to happen - if it's still a mathematical possibility. A 6-8 seeding will see a first-round matchup against one of five opponents: San Antonio Spurs (48-14)